News

Overwaitea acquires three IGA stores in B.C.

Thursday, January 14, 2016

The Overwaitea Food Group (OFG) has acquired three
Marketplace IGA stores in British Columbia’s lower mainland from H.Y. Louie Co.
Limited, and will convert the locations to the Save-On-Foods banner.

Overwaitea takes possession of the three stores – the Centrepoint
and Dunbar locations in Vancouver, and Old Orchard Mall in Burnaby – on March
31. The stores will close briefly so that they can be renovated to the Save-On-Foods
format. The acquisition brings Save-On-Foods’ total store count to 151 locations,
the company said.

“As a local grocer our philosophy is to tailor our stores
and the mix in those stores to suit the needs of our customers and their
communities. We rely on the folks who work in each of our stores to help us
understand and deliver this local service. By welcoming these talented people
to our team in these fantastic locations, we are in a great position to
continue growing our business,” says Darrell Jones, president, Overwaitea.

“This acquisition adds to Save-On-Foods’ growth strategy, in
the last two years we opened 23 new stores and look forward to opening over 25
more stores in the next 24 months,” added Jones.

In a statement, H.Y. Louie said the decision to sell the
stores “has not been made lightly… however this change will allow H.Y. Louie to
repurpose, grow different parts of our business and innovate in new ways to
build a stronger future for our company.”

One of the key elements in the decision process was the need
to take care of employees. “Under the terms of the collective agreement, the
220 people employed at these stores will continue to be employed by Tober Enterprises,
(which will now be owned by OFG) and will be brought under the fold of the
Save-OnFoods banner,” H.Y. Louie said.